Funeral home workers serve the needs of the families and friends of deceased persons by arranging for burial or cremation of the remains of the deceased in accordance with religious or social conventions. Some funeral home workers are trained to embalm and prepare the body, while others handle the details of the funeral service. Pay rates for funeral home workers vary based on their job descriptions.

Funeral Director

Funeral directors, sometimes referred to as undertakers or morticians, handle the logistics and details of the funeral according to the wishes of the family or friends of the deceased. The national mean annual salary for funeral directors was $61,460 as of May 2011, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, BLS. The top 10 percent of funeral directors earned more than $97,200 per year, while the bottom 10 percent earned annual wages of $29,490 or less.

Embalmers

Embalmers are funeral home workers who prepare the body for burial in accordance with local laws and customs. The average annual income for embalmers was $45,060 as of May 2011, according to the BLS. The The top 10 percent of the nation's embalmers made at least $64,410 per year, while the bottom 10 percent earned $27,010 or less.

Funeral Attendants

Funeral attendants take care of the details of the funeral process, including setting up the facility, arranging flowers or candles around the casket, escorting mourners into and out of the service and trransportation to places of worship or cemeteries. The national average annual wage for funeral attendants was $24,600 as of May 2011, according to the statistics bureau. The bottom 10 percent made $16,800 or less, while the top 10 percent earned annual wages of at least $35,570.

Considerations

Funeral homes in the United States employed 102,877 workers, and the funeral home industry generated approximately $11.95 billion in revenue in 2007, according to the National Funeral Directors Association. The Bureau of Labor Statistics projects growth in new job opportunities for funeral directors of 18 percent between 2010 and 2020, compared with 14 percent average growth for all U.S. occupations. Funeral home workers who are trained to embalm and who are willing to relocate should have the best employment opportunities.

About the Author

Mike Parker is a full-time writer, publisher and independent businessman. His background includes a career as an investments broker with such NYSE member firms as Edward Jones & Company, AG Edwards & Sons and Dean Witter. He helped launch DiscoverCard as one of the company's first merchant sales reps.